“Welcome to your first day of training as a real squad,” Weiss announced proudly.

It turned out that the Bastion was located on an island in the middle of the Nonestic Ocean. There was a barrier surrounding the entire island that made it invisible to anyone outside of the Bastion. The only way in and out was through a R.A.B.I.T. hole which was solely controlled by the Hallowed, according to Weiss.

He and the rest of the order were in the middle of a training field on the southern side of the island. The others had all been through basic training just as he had been in the last few weeks, but this was the first time he was getting to train with the others. He was definitely feeling the pressure to show what he could do. It was intimidating knowing that they had been at it longer than he had, but he took comfort knowing that none of them had been on their first group mission yet.

“Today, we will all be doing a bit of sparring. As I have explained before, your will is what gives your weapons power. If you want to destroy your enemy then you will do so.” She reached down to her belt where she had a deck of cards stowed in a box. She pulled one out and flicked it behind her without turning. The card flew into a test dummy that exploded on contact. Everyone stared in awe. It was the first time that any of them had seen Weiss use any sort of force. It occurred to Rift, with a large amount of uneasiness, that she had meant it when she said she could force him to come with her involuntarily.

“However, if you simply want to annoy them–” She pulled another card out and flicked it at Anzu. It bounced off the side of his head and he flinched a bit before rubbing the area.

“Ouch, guess I wasn’t expecting that.” He chuckled while everyone else snickered.

Weiss grinned apologetically. “Well, you get the point. Now, stay within the clearing, and the first person who lands a hit ends the match. I only want disarming hits. No one shall use their full will, do I make myself clear?”

Everyone nodded as they turned to their partners. Kira was with Yuki and Sebastian with Anzu. That left him partnered with Zephyr, which was yet another relief. The two of them were becoming close friends, so it took the edge off a bit. Most of the last three weeks were in solitude, outside of meals. They were kept so busy with training and studying Araphel history that they didn’t have time for much else. It was nice that they all finally had the opportunity to work on the field together. It would give them the chance to see what each one could do. Besides, it was the first time they would be working with moving targets.

“Begin!” Weiss shouted.

Everyone moved at once, not wanting to give the other person an advantage. Rift attempted to close out all of the movement around him. The clanging of metal and shouts of frustration filled the air, but he stayed focused on his target. Zephyr stayed trained on him as well and readied his bow. Bolts of green energy formed in his hand as he reached behind for his quiver and as he brought his hand back to ready his bow crystalized arrows had appeared. Rift assumed the energy was his own will materializing, something he’d never seen before. Rift readied himself as Zephyr took aim. The first arrow flew and Rift easily swiped it away with his blade. He hadn’t seen him release the next arrow until it was almost on him. Again, Rift knocked it away and pushed to get closer to him.

Zephyr released another arrow that suddenly split into three. They caught Rift off guard, but he flipped sideways just in time to avoid them. He was now almost on him, but Zephyr kept his gaze locked on him. Rift raised his sword to land the match-ending blow when Zephyr grabbed his bow by both ends and pulled them apart. As he did so, Rift noticed that the ends of them were bladed.

Zephyr blocked Rift’s sword and pushed forward. The force of the recoil caused Rift to fall back, almost dropping Excalibur. The opening made him an open target, and Zephyr was ready. He ran towards Rift as quickly as his legs could carry him and thrust both of his blades forward. Right as he was about to connect with Rift’s torso, time seemed to slow down like it had the night he met Weiss. Rift looked around as everyone nearby him barely moved, except for Weiss who had been watching him intently. She gave him a small wink and a nod. Was this his own doing?

Not wanting to waste another moment, he pushed off of the ground, flipped over Zephyr, and used the hilt of Excalibur to hit him in his back. The force from the attack caused a ripple as he connected with his target. Suddenly, time caught up with itself and Zephyr went flying across the clearing. Rift stood in amazement as he had not meant to send him clear across the training area.

“Oh shit, are you okay?!” Rift exclaimed as he ran over.

Zephyr groaned as he sat up, “I guess I should be glad you didn’t use the bladed end.” He managed to choke out. “Might have cut me clean in half.” He chuckled.

Rift dropped to his knees as he looked over Zephyr. “I’m really sorry Zeph, I hadn’t meant to knock the hell out of you.”

Zephyr laughed, “No biggie man, I just didn’t know you could teleport like that.”

“Teleport?” Rift said, confused.

“It makes sense, doesn’t it?” Weiss chimed in as she made her way over. “It seems as though you, my dear Rift, have the ability to manipulate time. In other words, you are a chronomancer.”

“Wow, really? Well, there was no way I’d have been able to stop that last attack.” Zephyr noted as he tried to stand.

Rift reached down and helped him stand. “I can control time? I mean, I knew something was up that night the car almost hit me, but it’s not something I can make happen. It just happens.”

Weiss circled him as she looked him over. “Well, magic is very volatile. It’s unpredictable and, as you saw, it can have devastating effects if you don’t learn how to control it. All in good time my dear, I can help you with that as I am a chronomancer myself of sorts.” She stopped circling and gave him a wink. Before Rift could ask further questions she looked at her pocket watch and held up her hand. “That’s enough for today! You all did well!”

Zephyr dusted himself off and gave Rift an assuring smile before walking to join the others. Rift wondered what this meant for him and how far he could actually control time. Could he make it go forward or backward? Could he stop it completely? So far, he had only been able to make it slow down. He wasn’t sure, but the thought of having new abilities both excited and worried him.